Existing Ambience
by Lyrical Rex
Summary: [SasuNaru] Sasuke doesn't want to fall in love. He doesn't want to see Naruto around anyone but him. Somehow, these two notwants contradict each other. [cliches abound]
1. One

Existing Ambience by Lil Riter sama 

_ZOMG, she's made the plunge. _

Rating: PG

Story warnings/notes: SasuNaru (obviously). Clichéd, might be sappy (depending on how much maple syrup you consume with your daily waffles) but if you know me… I'm a sucker for sap. And angst, but this isn't angsty. Was written to be as complete of a first chapter as possible. Trying to break away from my love of sudden stops. Because some people don't appreciate them. I went through crap to pull out this story. It lived around the corner from my Itachi/Naruto/Sasuke vampire story and across the street from my Sasuke-is-jealous-of-Kakashi story. It didn't answer the door until I'd rung the doorbell 2000 and 1 times. But it finally did!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

- 

Sasuke leaned against the railing on the bridge, calmly watching the river flowing below him. It was a hot, sticky sort of day; a lock of sweat-damped hair attached itself to his cheek, and Sasuke had half a mind to take off his shirt to prevent it from sticking itself firmly to his body.

-

Sasuke could _feel_ Sakura's eyes on him from her shady spot under the blossom tree at the end of the bridge. The gaze bothered him. Sakura had invited him to sit beside her an hour ago, as they waited for the other half of Cell Seven, but he'd pointedly refused, preferring instead to stand lookout for Naruto and Kakashi. Besides, what would the two have thought if they saw him sitting with Sakura? Naruto's heart would break seeing Sakura with Sasuke, and Kakashi would tease Sasuke endlessly. It was the former reason that worried him more, though.

-

Tilting his head back, Sasuke saw that the sun was nearly directly overhead. God, it was hot out! His legs were starting to shake from standing in the same position for hours. What always took their instructor so long? And where the hell was Naruto? Sasuke could not deny that he was worried over his rival's absence.

-

A whispery poof announced Kakashi's arrival, and Sasuke turned to see the jounin squatting on the railing across from him. "Yo," the copy-nin said, raising a gloved hand in salute. "Hot out here, isn't it?"

-

"It sure is!" Sakura chimed loudly. "What took you so long to get here?" She stood up and walked over to them.

-

Sasuke disguised a disgusted look by turning his face away. "Hn." The first question _he_ would have asked was _where was Naruto?_

-

"Saa... What poor display of camaraderie." The older man adjusted his hitae-ate with his left hand; his right carried a basket filled to the brim with fruits and vegetables, as well as what seemed to be supplement pills and a detailed diet regimen. "The first question you should have asked was about Naruto."

-

Sasuke looked back at Sakura again, secretly relishing in the girl's dismayed look. "What did happen to him?" Sasuke asked nonchalantly.

-

"Naruto caught a virus from one of the kids he plays with. He's at home, throwing up and blowing snot bubbles. I've been keeping him company all morning, when I suddenly remembered you two, so I thought I'd go run some errands and have you two take care of him for the time being." Kakashi put the basket on the ground. At seeing the looks on his two subordinates' faces, his eye glinted. "Think of it this way," he said. "This will foster camaraderie." And with another poof, he was gone.

-

* * *

- 

"Sasuke-kun," Sakura said as the brunet boy picked the basket from the ground. "Do you want to have lunch with me?"

-

"No." Sasuke tested the weight of the basket. "Did you forget that we have to go look after Naruto?"

-

"We can eat after we visit Naruto!" Sakura quickened her pace to catch up with Sasuke. "Besides, I thought you hated Naruto."

-

"That's right," Sasuke said, stopping and looking at Sakura. "I did. But if you do not want to visit Naruto, I'm fine on my own." He started walking again.

-

"But Sasuke-kun...!"

-

"I'm fine on my own," he snapped, glaring at her with icy eyes. Satisfied that she was not going to follow him, Sasuke walked on.

-

Sakura was stopped in her tracks, left to watch Sasuke's back with wide eyes. "Sasuke-kun... Why do you care so much?"

-

* * *

- 

The heat was stifling, and even some of the flowers _inside_ the flower shop were starting to wilt. Sasuke found himself watching the orange-gold flowers through the glass. The petals were wrinkling, and the heavy flowers were weighing down the stem. The plant looked sickly, which seemed awkward to him; the wilting petals did not suit a colorful flower like that. It reminded him of Naruto.

-

A blast of air conditioned coolness greeted Sasuke as he stepped into the Yamanaka flower shop. Sasuke's right eye twitched; his feet were going against his will! "Ah, it's you," greeted a lazy family friend of the Yamanaka's. "Don't worry, I won't tell Ino that you're buying flowers for someone." Sasuke ignored Shikamaru and pointed at the plant he'd been looking at through the window.

-

"Can I buy this one?"

-

"Hm?" Shikamaru looked at the plant the other boy wanted. It was a single orange-gold daffodil planted in a small plastic pot. "It's wilting."

-

"I know." Sasuke brought the pot to the register. "Can I get a card?"

-

"That's three ryo," Shikamaru said, setting out a card and pen. "I don't know who would want such an ugly thing. Is it for your house?"

-

"Perhaps." Sasuke signed the card and attached it to the plant. He put down three coins, and put the plastic pot into his basket. "Goodbye."

-

* * *

- 

Sasuke wondered why he was doing it. He hated Naruto, didn't he? So what was this feeling that made him want to make Naruto…be okay? Sasuke's scowl grew more pronounced with every passing thought. Naruto was just a stupid blond after all…

-

Naruto lived in the south apartment complex, two floors up and all the way down the hall; it was the most out-of-the-way home Sasuke had ever seen. He could smell the dust in the hallway. Paint was peeling off of the walls, and Naruto's doorway was made of cheap wood and not even glazed. With Naruto's wages, he could probably barely pay for the rent of this place.

-

"Naruto?" Sasuke opened the door, knowing that a sick Naruto could not open it. Naruto lived in a one-room apartment, and there was no barrier between his sleeping space and his kitchen. Sasuke eyed the futon on the floor; he could never sleep on that in his own home. "Naruto!" he called out again. The sound of stomach substances hitting porcelain answered him. In an instant, Sasuke had left the basket on the table and was at Naruto's side, holding Naruto by the arm so the blond would not pitch head first into his own vomit.

-

"Ah…" Naruto groaned, falling against Sasuke's leg. "Thanks, Kaka-sensei."

-

Sasuke bit his lip at the contact of the blond's sweaty cheek on his knee. Sasuke's senses were always heightened with the blond around, for some reason. And the feeling of holding Naruto's bare arm with Naruto's hot breath so close to his skin was nearly unbearable to the point of wanting to kick the boy away. "I'm not Kakashi."

-

"Huh? Oh, Sasuke." Naruto wiped his mouth on the back of his free hand. Sasuke stared down at his teammate. Never had he seen the boy without his annoying orange outfit on, but now, Naruto was clad in a faded Konoha t-shirt and his blue boxer shorts. Without all the orange, he seemed more normal. "Help me get up."

-

Sasuke's eye twitched. So Kakashi earned a _thanks_, but he did not even merit a _hello_? Sasuke pulled Naruto up to his feet, and allowed the blond to use him as a crutch.

-

"I can help myself," the blond croaked, trying to stand straight.

-

"Don't be ridiculous." Sasuke jerked Naruto back onto his shoulder. "Your forehead is burning."

-

Sasuke helped Naruto back to his futon, and then went to wet a cloth. In the bathroom, Sasuke stared at his reflection; what was this feeling that he had when Naruto was near? It was so odd; he wanted Naruto to feel better. And he had liked the feeling of Naruto leaning up against him…

-

Sasuke wasn't supposed to care about anybody. Of course, he cared for his teammates to a certain extent, but with Naruto... with Naruto, it was different.

-

"Uh, Sasuke?" Naruto asked when Sasuke came back to press the cool wet cloth to his forehead. "Is that flower for me?" Sasuke looked and saw that Naruto was pointing at the plant he had bought from the flower shop.

-

"Yes," he said shortly. "Do you want to eat?"

-

"Did Sakura buy it for me?" Naruto asked.

-

"No. Do you want to eat?" Sasuke asked again, irritated that the blond had asked if _Sakura_ had bought it.

-

"Then who did?"

-

"I did. Now do you want to eat or not?" Sasuke had already gotten from the chair that he had pulled up next to Naruto's futon.

-

"Oh." Naruto lay back onto his pillow. "Yeah, I'll have something."

-

Sasuke was irritated about Naruto's reaction to him. Was he so shocked that _oh_ was the only reply he could answer? Well, Naruto was feverish, and it was an understandable fever; Sasuke had thought it was hot outside, but if it was, it was burning in Naruto's apartment. The wide-open window did not help either, for there was no breeze today. Even so, he got up to cook soup for Naruto; not that it would help the heat.

-

* * *

- 

Sasuke watched the clock as Naruto slurped at his soup. Kakashi should have been back by now. It was too hot in the room, and he wished he could go outside; but he had a promise to Kakashi to keep. "Hey Sasuke?" he heard.

-

"Naruto?" he replied, turning his attention back to the blond. Immediately, he regretted it. His face grew hotter, and his heartbeat was speeding up. Perhaps he was catching the virus from Naruto.

-

"Sasuke, do you know any songs?" Naruto asked.

-

Sasuke thought for a moment, allowing his eyebrows to crease as he remembered a time when someone would sing _him_ to sleep. "My mother... she used to sing me to sleep. I can remember that song."

-

"Sasuke?" Naruto was looking up at him with wide blue eyes.

-

"Yes Naruto?" Sasuke leaned closer, brushing strands of blond from Naruto's forehead. His face was so flushed and sweaty, even with a wet cloth on it.

-

"Can you sing me to sleep?" Naruto asked, closing his eyes.

-

Sasuke paused for a moment, and then he felt a pressure squeezing his hand; Naruto was holding it. "Okay, um, I think it went like this...

_-_

_"Take me along to where you are._

_ I'll be like the wind and breathe quietly._

_ I'll open up my heart and cross over time."_

_- _

Naruto's grip slackened. Sasuke could see that he was already asleep. Sasuke allowed himself a smile. He wondered if he dared kiss Naruto, like his mother used to kiss him when he was sick.

-

Smoothing blond strands from his rival's forehead, he pressed his lips softly to it.

_- _

_" Please tell me your secrets._

_ I'm nervous about learning everything._

_ ...so why do I still want to know about these uncertain emotions inside me?"_

_- _

* * *

- 

When Naruto woke up, Kakashi was sitting at the table, eyes following the words on his orange book. "Kaka-sensei!"

-

"Yo, Naruto," Kakashi said, leaning back on the two hind legs of his chair. "How did your teammates treat you?"

-

"Sasuke treated me fine," Naruto said, sitting up in bed and stretching his sore muscles.

-

"And Sakura...?"

-

"I didn't see her." Naruto cuddled back into his pillow and closed his eyes. "Sasuke was really nice though. My fever's pretty high, and I don't remember everything, but I know it was weird."

-

"Ah," Kakashi said knowingly.

-

He had seen the tag on the foreign flower, written in Sasuke's neat kanji. He found it interesting that the _Get Well_ message was not even signed.

-

* * *

+The song is a Samurai Champloo song, "Who's theme," performed by Minmi, butchered curteousy of me.+

* * *

To be continued, as soon as possible. Reviews? 


	2. Two

**Existing Ambience**

Notes: If you haven't noticed, I'm a lame person. A very lame person. I... Had an entire chapter planned out but then I forgot it. -.-;;; That's why I have to freakin write down what I think! Grr... So you'll just have to settle for this filler while I look for my thoughts.

Thank for all the wonderful reviews!

And no the _Get Well _message did not contain anything of interest at all; just that, "Get Well." Not even a "Soon." I mean, come on, this is Sasuke! -.-;;

"Aa" means yes, I've heard, but in this story I've been using it as an alternate spelling of "Ah". Don't even ask; I don't know either.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

- 

Sasuke had always been a light sleeper, even before he started living alone and in fear of nightmares. Last night had been on a totally different level of _light sleeping_. He had tossed and turned, but he couldn't find a comfortable position. Then he had attempted a glass of water, a cup of warm milk, even tried a sleeping jutsu that was created for making medical patients fall asleep; he mixed up the hand seals, and hours later, he _still_ could _not_ get to sleep. He ended up staying up all night trying to meditate, but he could only keep seeing Naruto in his head.

-

The next morning found a tightly wound, sleep deprived Uchiha heir leaning against the bridge railing. He glanced irritably in all directions; Naruto and Kakashi were late—_again_.

-

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," Sakura said shyly, approaching him at his spot on the bridge. "Do you want to sit in the shade with me?"

-

"No," Sasuke said shortly.

-

"If it gets too hot again, you can sit next to me."

-

"Thanks for the offer." Sasuke stayed leaned against the railing.

-

Sasuke let out a breath he had not been holding when, ten minutes later, Naruto appeared, running over and waving exuberantly at Sakura. Kakashi trailed behind him with his nose buried in his orange book.

-

"Sakura-chan! I'm all better now, so will you go on a date with me today?" he proposed happily.

-

"Of course not!" Sakura said, huffing. "I'm waiting for my first date to be with Sasuke."

-

"Aw," said Naruto, frowning. Instead, he glared at Sasuke with his squinted eyes. "You ruined my life again, bastard!"

-

Sasuke glanced up at Naruto, but as soon as their eyes met, he looked away again, blushing. It felt just like when they got back from Wave Country, when they refused look each other in the eyes because of that stupid_ thing_ that Sasuke had done. His wandering mind vaguely registered the sounds of Sakura bonking Naruto's head, Naruto's cries, and Sakura reprimanding Naruto for calling the darker boy a bastard.

-

"Ah, it's time for training! We're going to focus on hand to hand combat today," their _jounin_ teacher said. His eyes curved upward joyfully, as he patted Naruto's head with his gloved hand. "So I'll be sparring with Naruto—"

-

"What!" Sasuke exclaimed, bristling. "Naruto's _my_ sparring partner though!"

-

Kakashi clucked his tongue. "Possessive are we? But I can't risk you two nearly killing each other after Naruto just got over a virus."

-

Sasuke grumbled, then mumbled under his breath, "I don't want to fight a _girl_."

-

"Hm? So you want to spar me?" Kakashi said, scratching his nose and still not looking up from his book.

-

"I don't want to—"

-

"Yay! I get to spar with Sakura-chan today!" Naruto crowed. "Sakura-chan, don't worry, I won't be rough."

-

"I wanted to be with Sasuke…" Sakura said sadly.

-

"But I don't want to spar with Kaka—"

-

"I'll make it short and easy on you then; if you can land a hit on me, you're free to go."

-

Sasuke rolled his eyes and decided to shut his mouth.

-

* * *

- 

"So Sasuke, how was your afternoon with Naruto yesterday?"

- 

"Shut up," Sasuke hissed, jumping into a roundhouse kick at Kakashi, who blocked it easily.

-

"I see you're quite frustrated at the moment," the older man taunted.

-

"I told you to shut up!" Another forceful kick was aimed at the teacher's head. "It's nothing."

-

Kakashi chuckled, even though he had put away his book to fight Sasuke. "Oh? Well, it was very kind of you to leave a get well card, though it is kind of hard to tell it was you, since you hadn't signed the card at all."

-

"Rrg!" Sasuke countered one of Kakashi's punches with an uppercut to the gut.

-

"Oof." Kakashi jumped back into a guarded position; he was surprised that Sasuke had managed to hit him. "You know, it's better to talk about your feelings rather than keeping them bottled up."

-

Sasuke spat to the ground and ignored the other man's advice. "I hit you. That means our spar is over now, right? Can I go now?"

-

* * *

- 

Sakura chased Sasuke down to ask, "Sasuke-kun, will you eat lunch with me?"

-

"No." Sasuke simply did _not_ have time to dawdle around with girls; he had things to do after all.

-

"Eat lunch with _me_, Sakura-chan!"

-

Sasuke's eye twitched at the loud, girly voice. He paused mid-step, wondering if he should turn back and make sure that Naruto did NOT eat lunch with Sakura, though why he should even care was much beyond him.

-

"I'm sorry Naruto… but the truth is, I don't want to be seen with a boy shorter than me." Ah, so Sakura was trying a new tactic now: letting Naruto down 'gently.' The boy was stubborn as hell though, and he would keep coming back for more. Sasuke's eye twitched again.

-

"What do you see in that prick anyway?" Naruto asked, harrumphing. Sasuke could just see his fox faced frown and the way his arms crossed and the way Naruto would throw out his chest. "He's so cold, and he doesn't let anyone in, and—"

-

"I'm still here, idiot. Don't talk about me behind my back." Naruto turned his head and stuck his tongue out at Sasuke. Sasuke shook his head at the immaturity. "How about," the dark haired boy said, "All three of us eat lunch together?"

-

Naruto's ocean blue eyes lit up at that, and Sasuke felt pleased. "Would you treat?"

-

"Of course not," Sasuke said. "But I guess you could pick the place to eat…"

-

"Ichiraku!" Naruto said immediately.

-

Sakura's mouth opened slightly. _ Ramen? _What kind of idiot was Naruto to bring up _ramen?_

_- _

* * *

- 

"And that's how you eat ramen," Naruto concluded.

-

"Che, only you would make eating ramen an art form," Sasuke grumbled, attempting to eat the noodles gracefully.

-

"Yeah, Naruto. There isn't much too it. Just open your mouth," the pink haired kunoichi did this as she said it, "and put the ramen in." She sucked the noodles into her mouth, droplets of broth dispatching from the noodles.

-

"But it_ is _an art, right old man?" Naruto said to the Ichiraku owner, grinning widely. The older man just smiled back.

-

"Stupid," Sasuke muttered, pushing back his bowl and standing up. "Anyway, I've got to get going now."

-

"Aa, we'll see you then Sasuke!" Sakura said as he departed.

-

* * *

to be continued

* * *


	3. Three

Existing Ambience by Lil Riter sama

I know, it's been forever, right? I'm not making any excuses for myself except for this: I was trying to wrap up the story. I had most of this finished a while ago, but I just... needed an ending. But, the ending hasn't come yet, sadly.

You forty something who watch this story should show your appreaction, just so you know.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

-

Sasuke dreamed.

-

* * *

- 

Naruto, hair lit golden in the sunset, leaned back on the grass. His bright orange jacket cast away a few feet off, hitae-ate tilting to cover his eyes. He giggled, cute nose scrunching and pressed lips stretching upwards. He shrieked in laughter, Sasuke's hands slipping under his dark t-shirt to run across the smooth skin, tracing the ticklish ribs and the beginnings of abdominal muscles.

-

"Come on," Sasuke growled playfully, "Can't you put up more of a fight?"

-

"Bastard! You're not playing fair!" Naruto whined between laughter. "You're supposed to _punch_ me, not _tickle_! And I can't even see!"

-

Sasuke hovered above Naruto, weight on his knees on either side of the other. They'd been rolling around in the dirt for hours, bruises and scrapes crisscrossing both of their bodies. Sasuke was breathless, though there was no way he would admit it, so once he had Naruto pinned beneath him (not to mention sweaty and panting), he tickled the boy instead of inciting another round of punches. Sasuke hadn't planned on reaching his fingers under Naruto's shirt, hadn't planned on his breath hitching at Naruto's beautiful laughter, hadn't planned on anything. He should have just stood up and walked away, but he couldn't now, not until he was able to catch his breath.

-

Naruto's loose hitae-ate slipped lower over his eyes. "Come on, Sasuke! I want to at least _see!" _So Sasuke stopped his fingers, left hand resting on Naruto's heaving chest as he used his right one to gently push Naruto's hitae-ate from his eyes.

-

It occurred to Sasuke that he'd never noticed how beautiful those eyes were, glassy blue in a million shades, dancing with life. Suddenly, he felt everything. Sasuke felt his chest constrict, his knees shake, the wind in his hair. He was acutely aware of the boy he straddled, the blond's breathless smile. And those _eyes_ were pools of priceless lapis.

-

Then, like how he hadn't even meant to stroke Naruto's body, he leaned forward so their lips—

-

* * *

- 

"Sasuke! It's time to get up! _Get up!_"

-

Sasuke groaned and rolled over, burying his face in his pillow. "What an obnoxious voice to wake up to," Sasuke muttered.

-

A weight landed at the foot of his bed. "Sas_uke_! We have a mission! Let's go! Let'sgolet'sgolet'sgo!"

-

"Alright, _fine,"_ Sasuke conceded, sitting up. "I'm up. Now get off my bed, idiot. And out of my house."

-

Naruto pouted. "That's not a good way to treat your teammate," he scolded playfully. He jumped up and looked around in awe at the house. "I can't believe you live in an actual _house_. A proper one! With traditional doors and tatami and a freaking garden in your backyard! How do you take care of this place?"

-

"I just don't touch anything, and nothing gets dirty," Sasuke informed him. Naruto peered at Sasuke intently, wondering if he had just made a joke, because if it was, it was a bad one. "Now, I'm going to count to three, and if you're not gone by then, I'm going to beat you to a pulp, and you won't be able to do a mission.

-

"One," he counted, putting up a finger. Naruto stuck his tongue out at him, before fleeing the room. Sasuke sighed in relief, until he heard Naruto in the kitchen.

-

* * *

- 

Sasuke had to admit, it was nice walking to the meeting place with Naruto. The blond bounced along ahead of him, as energetic as ever, and chattered incessantly, but he didn't pick any fights like he usually did or bother Sasuke with date proposals like Sakura would. Plus, Sasuke thought with a slight blush, Naruto made a good breakfast. It had been cute seeing Naruto dashing around his kitchen, making omelets for them both. Sasuke hadn't eaten a hot breakfast in a long time.

-

Sakura was there when the reached the meeting spot. She stood staring into the water, a frown tugging at her lips. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto called, and Sasuke almost wanted to pull him back. Sakura turned to look, her eyes widening slightly at the sight of the boys before they softened into an understanding type of look.

-

"Naruto," she said. "I need to talk to you. Come here…"

-

And when Sakura pulled the blond to the opposite side of the bridge to talk softly with the blond, Sasuke scowled.

-

* * *

-

The longer they talked, the more annoyed Sasuke got. He watched them carefully, though he didn't dare to move closer to try to overhear what they were saying. Sakura's expression changed from hurt to understanding to glee and determination. Meanwhile, Naruto began to blush, ducking his head and poking his fingers together nervously. Sakura put a firm hand on his shoulder, and he smiled at her. He flung his arms around her neck in something like joy, and Sasuke could feel his stomach lurch. He tore his eyes away.

-

Think about something else. Anything else.

-

Last night's dream had been disturbing on different levels. For one, did Sasuke just have a dream about Naruto? A slightly _romantic_ dream? Naruto was a boy. Naruto was his _rival_. Naruto was _Naruto_, and he hated him, didn't he? Used to hate him, anyway.

-

And another point: Naruto was his _best friend_. In Sasuke's book, that meant way more than anything else. There was absolutely no way he could jeopardize something like that for something as trivial as jealousy. So Sasuke ground his teeth and tried to ignore his teammates the way he did yesterday, the day before, and every day before that.

-

* * *

- 

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura and Naruto chorused when Kakashi got there.

-

Kakashi gave an oblivious laugh. "Well you see, there was this dog…"

-

"LIAR!"

-

Kakashi laughed again. "Today, we're working on our fighting again. So Sasuke, you and Naruto…"

-

"What about the mission?" Naruto interrupted.

-

"What mission?" Kakashi asked innocently.

-

"The one you were talking about!" Naruto exclaimed. "The one I woke up extra early to get ready for! The one that-!"

-

Sasuke cut him off with a cuff to his head. "He said there isn't one, so there isn't one, dead last. Stop being so obnoxious."

-

"You bastard!" Naruto yelled. "Don't hit a man when he isn't looking!"

-

Sasuke huffed and turned his face away.

-

"Listen to me when I'm talking!"

-

Naruto barreled into Sasuke's side, head first.

-

"Sakura-chan, since they've got their fight going, let's go over their and work on your taijutsu," Kakashi suggested with a lazy grin.

-

* * *

-

Naruto had Sasuke pinned to the ground, one knee digging into his back, hand pushing Sasuke's face into the dirt. "Say _uncle_," Naruto said triumphantly.

-

"No," Sasuke refused, even as dirt came into his mouth.

-

"_Say it!_" Naruto pressed on Sasuke's head further. Sasuke was overly aware of the thick fingers tangling in his hair, Naruto half straddling him, and the dirt against his cheek. The situation looked bad, but Sasuke could take control if…

-

He slowly moved his right arm around out of Naruto's line of vision, and grabbed Naruto's hand tight enough to catch him by surprise. Then he jerked Naruto's hand out from under him, bringing the blond's weight down on him. He summoned up enough strength for one last round of kicks and punches, coming out on top. "Heh," Sasuke breathed out. "Pinned you."

-

They were dirty and panting and sweating, out of chakra and out of stamina. Naruto was breathless, and his hitae-ate slipped down to loosely cover an eye. Unwittingly, Sasuke picked up a hand and drummed his finger tips on Naruto's abdomen. Sasuke stared down at the giggling blond and wondered where he'd seen this seen before…

-

Sasuke snatched his hand back immediately and rolled off from his rival. He checked the sun; it was no where near sunset like in the dream, but would it matter? "Sasuke?" Naruto queried, sitting up and pushing his hitae-ate out of his eyes.

-

"I won, dead last," Sasuke told him, before flopping back on to the grass. Naruto looked down at him with a quirked eyebrow until he reached out and pulled Naruto back onto the grass by the shoulder. "Let's have a rest before we go to lunch," Sasuke told him. When he didn't receive an affirmative reply, Sasuke turned his head right.

-

Naruto was soundly asleep, snoring softly.

-

* * *

- 

"What's he _doing?_"

-

"He's watching Naruto sleep, of course! It's so _cute._"

-

"Yeah, but, this is Sasuke we're talking about! He doesn't do tender."

-

"For Naruto, he does. Did you hear about the flower he bought Naruto?"

-

"Shikamaru told me. The foreign, not very cheap one? Even though Shikamaru discounted it because it was kind of wilted, it cost more than another flower in the same condition."

-

"I would have picked a sunflower, but the daffodil fits him better. Sasuke has such good taste."

-

"Of course he does."

-

"Don't pout, Ino. Just because he'll never like you doesn't mean you should be put out by it."

-

"What about you, Sakura? Don't tell me you're not disappointed."

-

"Of course I am! But, you know, there are other fish in the see. And I'm cute. No guy in his right mind would resist me!"

-

"Unless they've got feelings for other boys, you mean."

-

"Yeah!"

-

"So what are we going to do about this?"

-

* * *

tobecontinued.

* * *


End file.
